But thou hast increased the nation, O LORD, thou hast increased the nation: There is a contrast here with the demise of the foreign rulers who once ruled Judah (verses 13-14), so Revised Standard Version begins with the connector But. The repetition of thou hast increased the nation emphasizes this action of Yahweh for Judah. The nation refers to Judah, which Good News Translation and Contemporary English Version clarify by saying “our nation.” Bible en français courant is similar with “our people,” and so is Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch with “Your people.” According to the last line of this verse, thou has increased the nation means that Yahweh has expanded the territory of Judah, perhaps through the destruction of the “other lords” of verse 13. It also implies an expanded population. Increased may be rendered “added to” or “enlarged” to include both territorial and population growth. Good News Translation has “made … grow,” while Bible en français courant and Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch say “made great.”

Thou art glorified is a result of Judah’s expansion. Yahweh brought honor to himself by enlarging the nation. The Hebrew verb here has a reflexive sense. Revised English Bible expresses this by saying “[you have] won honour for yourself” (similarly New Jerusalem Bible). New International Version has “You have gained glory for yourself.”

Thou hast enlarged all the borders of the land: This line explains that increasing the nation primarily refers to extending its borders. The verb enlarged is literally “furthered” or “extending outwards.” For this line New Jerusalem Bible says “you have rolled back the frontiers of the country” (similarly Bible en français courant), but this may mean the country became smaller, so it is not a good model. Good News Translation is better with “enlarging its territory on every side.” Contemporary English Version is also helpful with “We have more land than before.”

Translation examples for this verse are:

• You, Yahweh, enlarged the nation;
you enlarged the nation, and gained honor [for yourself];
you extended the frontiers of the land.

• Yahweh, you made your people grow;
you made your people grow, and thus you won honor for yourself;
you expanded the land on all sides.

Quoted with permission from Ogden, Graham S. and Sterk, Jan. A Handbook on Isaiah. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2011. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .